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Post by Basil on May 1, 2010 9:30:06 GMT 7
The best Italian food in town! The place is posh and the food cooked to perfection. Eat your fill, but there will be hell to pay if you can't foot your bill. |
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Post by Rae on Jun 25, 2010 0:22:37 GMT 7
Dante and Maya rushed into the restruant, shaking rain from their hair and clothes.
"Honestly, Dante," Maya said sweetly, taking her jacket off, "you didn't have to take me here. It must cost a fortune."
Dante pulled a wounded face as he stopped shaking water from his hair and went to sign the leger. He knew he only had twenty bucks, but still...he wanted to outdo his brother when it came to Maya.
"Don't you trust me?" he asked still sounding wounded as he signed.
"Of course," Maya smiled. Her smile slipped off as she read the words at the top of the page. She was rusty on her Latin, but she was sure it said 'Abandon every hope, ye who enter.' Worry blossomed in the pit of her stomach. "D-Dante?"
"Let's go."
---
Vergil stared at the phone so fiercely that it seemed he could burn holes throught it. Enzo had called not five minutes previously with news that wasn't a surprise. Dante was missing. He had been for a week. And Enzo, ever the idiot, couldn't understand why his oh-so wonderful "Tony" wasn't returning his calls.
Where are you, brother? And where have you taken Maya? he wondered, playing with Yamato's ribbons. He wasn't sure how he was going to tell his parents.
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Post by Basil on Jun 25, 2010 0:34:13 GMT 7
Selena was sitting beside Vergil. Her head was on his shoulder. She sat up and frowned. She could already guess what was bothering him. Dante and Maya had been missing for a week.
"What's up with Enzo? Does he have any news about Dante and Maya?"
She fiddled with the hem of her dress. She hoped he wouldn't change his mind about going out with her tonight. She had to call nearly a month in advance to make reservations for tonight. She paused and leaned over. She gave him a peck on his cheek. She hoped that that will get a response out of him at the very least. He was brooding again.
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Post by Rae on Jun 25, 2010 0:51:03 GMT 7
"No," he replied quietly. "He only said that Dante wasn't answering any of his calls."
Old news, he thought. He was considering calling off the evening, but he'd promised Selena and he wasn't one to break promises. Not to mention that they ere going to the last place Dante was seen.
"Are you ready?" he asked, turning to look at Selena. His blue eyes were cool as he watched her.
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Post by Basil on Jun 25, 2010 1:02:44 GMT 7
Selena kissed him lightly on his lips. She was relieved that he didn't change his mind. The receptionist wouldn't be happy. That lady had been quite reluctant to allow her to make a reservation, but the gold coins she slipped her under the table did the trick. She smirked.
"I've been waiting all afternoon."
[time-skip]
Selena waltzed over to the front door. She seldom had the chance to come to this part of town. It was very posh. She secretly wondered how Dante managed to sneak in. She didn't remember him dressing up that night. Then again, she heard that Chef De Luca never turned down a potential customer, even though he or she wasn't properly attired.
She slipped an arm around Vergil's. She beamed.
"Are you ready?" She asked tenderly, repeating the same words he used earlier.
This was probably the only way they can ever find out what had happened to Dante and Maya...
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Post by Rae on Jun 25, 2010 1:22:47 GMT 7
Vergil ran a hand through his hair, pushing it out of his face. He wondered if they would find a lead here, especially with the demonic aura that seemed to radiate from this place.
"As a warning, they might not take so kindly to seeing me," he murmured to Selena.
He opened the door for her and followed after her.
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Post by Basil on Jun 25, 2010 1:31:47 GMT 7
Selena stood at the podium. The head waiter was busy ushering another couple to their table. She opened her black clutch and took out the reservation slip. She can't believe how crowded it was. She resisted the urge to tap her foot impatiently. It simply wasn't done.
Instead, she choose to look around the reception area. The only thing that caught her eye was the guest book. It was conveniently placed right beside the podium. She leaned forward and scanned the page. She noticed that every page had a date written on the top right hand corner. On impulse, she flipped to the 3rd of October.
"Bingo," she thought.
She turned around and motioned for Vergil to come over. There on the page was a familiar signature. It was Dante's.
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Post by Rae on Jun 25, 2010 2:20:01 GMT 7
Vergil leaned closer, his head tilted curiously. He nearly snorted. Leave it to Dante to take up all that space for something so simple like a signature, he thought looking at his brother's scrawl. Feeling oddly reckless, the half-devil signed the page for their current date. A wave of trepidation washed over him. Something wasn't quite right here. More so than normal. Instinct was telling him to leave, but he stood firm, gripping Yamato tighter than usual.
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Post by Basil on Jun 25, 2010 16:35:37 GMT 7
The head waiter gave a discreet cough. Selena looked up. She smiled and slipped her arm around Vergil's again and followed the head waiter. He lead them to a table under the alcove. They can see the entire restaurant from where they sat.
She raised an eyebrow when she noticed the gold and marble staircase leading down from the second floor, where Chef De Luca's office was, down to the center of the dining area. He was taking the celebrity thing far too seriously.
The waiter pretended he didn't notice her expression. He handed them their menus.
"Before you order, can you please sign something?"
He reached into his jacket and pulled out two rolled up parchments. "Chef Dante is very insistent that you'll have to sign before you are allowed to order."
She read the parchment that was placed in front of her. It was in Latin. However, she only knew enough to recognize the text. She was curious about what it said. She wasn't willing to sign something she didn't understand. She smiled to the waiter.
"Can you give us a moment to decide? We'll let you know when we are ready."
She waited to the waiter was out of earshot. She leaned over and spoke as softly as she could. "Vergil, do you know what it says? I don't trust it."
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Post by Rae on Jun 25, 2010 23:30:00 GMT 7
Vergil straightened out the parchment and began to read. His frown became more pronounced the farther along he got. The boy cast a quick glance at the menu and did a mental count of how much money he had.
"Tell me, Selena, have you ever been particularly gluttonous?" Vergil asked, returning his gaze to the contract. "It would seem that this contract invites us to eat as much as we want, but should we not pay we hand our souls over to this...Chef Dante."
He frowned. It looked like they knew what happened to his brother.
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Post by Basil on Jun 26, 2010 0:28:37 GMT 7
Selena raised an eyebrow. "Not particularly. Gluttony isn't one of my pet sins. Only sloth and lust."
She leaned back and studied the menu. There had to be a catch somewhere. She glanced around the room. She was slightly disgusted. The man sitting at the table directly in front of them was pigging out. He couldn't seem to stop eating. Next to him was a pile of plates. She counted them. There were twelve in all. Littered on the floor around him were the remains of what appears to be bread. She wondered how many he had eaten.
She grimaced and took a sip of red wine. It was good! She was surprised. She wanted red wine, but she didn't remember ordering a glass. She felt someone looking in her direction. She turned around. It was the bar tender. He winked. She blushed a little. She didn't like the look he was giving her. She smiled nervously and turned back to Vergil.
"Looks like the food here is good, too good."
She picked up the contract again. "What do you plan to do? We can afford to pay if we are careful..."
She hoped he wasn't planning to do what she think he was. She had no intention of finding out what was inside the kitchen. Those who have been carted off to help with the dishes never returned. Or so rumors say...
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Post by Rae on Jun 26, 2010 1:07:31 GMT 7
Vergil hesitated. He knew what Dante would do. Dante would run into that kitchen, guns blazing, and demand to talk with the head chef. But he wasn't Dante. He needed a logical plan. And there was a small problem. Vergil knew he could be exceptionally greedy and that worried him.
The boy stared at the glass of wine in front of him. He hadn't particularly wanted anything to drink, though he supposed wine could be considered a poison of his.
"We'll sign it," he murmured. "We'll pretend we are just normal customers enjoying a night out, then when we're done, we'll pay and try to find a way in around back."
Vergil looked down at the contract and briefly wondered if he could even sell his soul. He mentally shrugged and signed.
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Post by Basil on Jun 26, 2010 1:36:54 GMT 7
Selena picked up the quill and signed with a flourish. She studied her signature when it was done. It was almost as fanciful and big as Dante's. However, she felt that it was way classier. She smiled and signaled to the head waiter.
~+~+~+~
The head waiter smiled broadly as he took back the contracts. They vanished the moment, he took them back. He motioned for one of the waiters to come over with a bread basket. He took from the waiter and placed it on the table. There were an assortment of freshly baked buns inside the basket. In the center was a butter dish containing spiced butter. The herbs were unidentifiable.
"I trust everything is to your liking?"
He took a step back and took out a small writing pad. "So, what would you and the lady like to order?"
He was glad that they didn't take long to decide. The gentleman ordered the steak gorgonzola alfredo whereas the lady ordered seafood portofino. He went to the kitchen to fill in their orders for them. When he was done, he entered the staff lift and went up to the second floor. He knocked hesitantly on Chef De Luca's door.
"What is it?" Came a furious yell.
He quailed. "Sir, Vergil Sparda is here like you predicted. He's with a lady friend."
He stepped back as the door swung open. He gulped when he heard his boss asking him to step inside. After turning around to make sure that no one sees him, he stepped inside.
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Post by Rae on Jun 26, 2010 2:40:20 GMT 7
Vergil gave the bread a cool look and sipped his wine. He wondered about who this chef was.
---
Vergil Sparda, the chef thought curiously. He was glad the boy had come to him. After all, if he had both sons, then Sparda would come to him.
"Salvi," he began thoughtfully, "hold him here. I would like to meet this son of Sparda."
He'd heard many things from his spies about the sons, but he was anxious to meet the elder. After all, Vergil had an ambition that he could fufill. If he could get the boy onto his side.... In short, Mundus was happy with the day's turn out. Very happy.
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Post by Basil on Jun 26, 2010 3:17:37 GMT 7
Selena noticed one of the waiters looking in her direction. She picked up one of the buns and pretended to cut it up. She had seen how people started shoveling food down their throats after they took a bite of the bread. The more they ate, the hungrier they seem to be. It was disgusting... and unfair. There's no way anyone will be able to pay for so much.
The head waiter came over to their table. He was wringing his hands nervously. He was upset that they didn't seem to want to eat the bread.
"Is the bread not to your liking?" He asked politely.
"Why don't you have a salad? It's on the house."
Before Selena could protest, a waitress came over with two plates. The head waiter placed the plates in front of them. He smiled charmingly.
"Chef De Luca wants you to enjoy this evening as much as possible. In fact, he wants to join you later, after his performance."
Selena raised an eyebrow. "That's ... very kind of him."
Something was up. Chef De Luca never joined any of his guests at the table. Either that or Erin had been lying to her. He was supposedly the snootiest chef in town. She picked up her fork. The salad was interesting. It seemed to be made of different types of seaweed. She smiled wryly as she looked at Vergil. Maybe they should eat something or make a show of doing so...
As she was deciding whether it was safe to take a bite, two waiters rushed out of the kitchen with a cooking trolley. They pushed it towards the center of the dining room and left it there. A third waiter came out and put a stool behind the trolley. She relaxed a little. The show was about to begin. She wondered whose dish Chef De Luca was planning to prepare. She flinched when the head waiter leaned closer to them.
"Chef De Luca just informed me that he'll be preparing your main courses himself."
He smirked. "You two are probably the luckiest couple here tonight. Everyone would die to be in your position."
Selena felt that she had to disagree. They were receiving far too much attention. They weren't even local celebrities. It was making her very nervous. It was then that she looked up. She nearly dropped her wine glass. She could have sworn that the waiter who brought out the stool was Dante! She turned to Vergil again. She wondered if he noticed it too.
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